Feathered Friends Through My Window

Summer In South Africa

Early morning windows flung wide open listening to morning song, keeping an eye open for movement around the garden, normal ritual most mornings.

Laughing dove (Spilopelia senegalensis) gentle song 'koo koo kuRUkutu - koo' sounds out with these very local residents, here enjoying the sun together splaying their feathers after a brief sand bath.

Would be remiss of me to not mention the posing Brown-hooded Kingfisher (Halcyon albiventris) I will have to given the family a name with three arriving daily. You know they are in the hood with the 'ki-ti-ti-ti-it' high sounding calls they make when chatting to each other.

Cleaner plucking under the lawns in shade of house is Hadeda Ibis (Bostrychia hagedash) beak is full, quiet at the moment. Name of the 'ha-da-da' from loud raucous trumpeting noise they make when startled, also affectionately called the South African alarm clock, mornings and evenings before retiring to their tree.

My helper Woody who sits on his chair to peer out from lower window, checking on what I have seen in the garden or just plain jealous!

Clean the windows why don't you? More dust or poop from geckos will land there, wasps poop another evil that dirties windows in no time at all, so I open them this is just proof of where some photography is taken, an ideal hideout for an amateur bird watcher.

Hot tin roof dance of the Hadada even from distance one can see how bright red the feet have gone from the heat retained in the ugly tin roof too close for comfort, I normally angle this out who wants to see that when we enjoyed pristine bush here for thirty years?

Bird watching does not stop when the air conditioner goes on around midday, sun starts swinging across to filter into the room where I hide, if I hear a bird or notice movement I move into another room where window is open and wallah another hidey hole to photograph from!

The Cape sparrow (Passer melanurus) sings a lovely little tune, at times become quite chatty close to windows or under rafters outside. Many sparrows are overlooked but have distinct features makes them different in regions.

Two little Sparrows sitting in the garden sharing a branch together, turn this way then that, no aguments or disharmony to fly back home later, these are both females the males have a distinct black face.

My window bird watching/stalking somewhere they quite comfortable as am I, wishing you all a wonderful Friday after celebrating my next number, heading into my own new year, I've just been younger than most of us....

"You are old enough to do what you want and pretend you don’t remember doing it!" - my thoughts exactly tomorrow is never promised to anyone!

Contest 50 - Thank you Feathered Friends Community @melinda010100, @nelinoeva, @barbara-orenya, @oks2crypto - Birds Out My Window

All photography is my own. Any queries or requests please drop a comment below or make contact with me, have a wonderful day! Photography without tripod, go with the flow wherever life takes you. NB: Amateur photographer and bird watcher, keep smiling!

Thought for Today: "A woman is never old when it comes to the dance she knows." - African Proverb

How To

by @barbara-orenya